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A Rawther Special Place

A Rawther Special Place

I went to a special tea party the other day. It was in honor of Eloise, that famous six-year-old resident of NYC's most famous hotel, The Plaza, and her favorite mostly companion (next to her Nanny, dog Weenie and turtle Skiperdee, of course): artist Hilary Knight, whose pen first sketched the little lady almost 60 years ago. I had the honor of chatting with the dapper Mr. Knight who, in his last-of-the-old-time-gentlemen manner, professed bewilderment at the whole Eloise phenomenon, which has been going strong since 1955.

And in fact is even stronger today. The party marked Eloise's sixth birthday -- though actually, it was the sixth birthday (almost) of the revamped hotel, which reopened in 2008. This new incarnation marked a new burst of All Things Eloise, including a shop full of clothes and memorabilia, a library and a very pink striped room for hosting private parties in, birthday or otherwise. It hosts special events, too: Coming up in December are several Rawther Fancy Teas with Santa, each Friday of the month.

Or, you can keep it simple and simply stop in for afternoon tea at The Palm Court, Eloise's command hq. The marble-columned room, with its domed stained-glass skylight, offers several different tea menus, full of those mini sandwiches, warm scones and desserts . We feasted on a version of the Eloise tea, geared for kids--it includes organic peanut butter and jelly, "pink pink jello" and "cold cold pink lemonade." Grownups might prefer another menu, named for another famous resident of The Plaza: F. Scott Fitzgerald. It includes a Champagne option.